Last-Becker Ensemble
The Last Becker Ensemble was a German jazz band that was popular in northwest Germany in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
The ensemble was formed in 1948 as an offshoot of the Radio Bremen dance orchestra , which was directed by Hans Günther Oesterreich , and existed until 1953. The band had the following core members: Karl-Heinz Becker, trumpet; Werner Last , trombone and accordion; Alfred Andre saxophone; Hans Last , bass; Robert Last , drums. Occasionally there were Cornelis op den Zieken, piano, Heinz Schultze, guitar or Helmut Zacharias , violin. The ensemble was so well known that the critics voted Hans Last the best bassist in the German jazz poll every year between 1950 and 1952 (which led to his collaboration with the then top German jazzers Max Greger , Albert Mangelsdorff and Paul Kuhn ).
After the group broke up, Hans Last became known as James Last. His brother Werner also made a career as an orchestra leader under the name Kai Warner. Robert Last worked with his brothers as a drummer and formed a studio band. Heinz Schultze was guitarist in the various orchestras of the Last brothers. Helmut Zacharias became an internationally known violin virtuoso of light entertainment. Karl-Heinz Becker directed the North German Wind Orchestra for many years, which for many years was an important part of the Bremen Harbor Concert , which has since been discontinued .
literature
- James Last, Thomas Macho Non Stop Life: The Autobiography Munich 2015
Web links
- Last taz, October 30, 2006
- Career start at Radio Bremen
Individual evidence
- ↑ Radiojahre: On the road to success ( Memento of the original from March 15, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
